Flacco didn't know Smith caught touchdown

Pictures of the Ravens game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17.

Edward Lee

From the press box at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and probably on television, it was pretty apparent that rookie wide receiver Torrey Smith had hauled in the 26-yard pass from quarterback Joe Flacco to propel the Ravens to a 23-20 victory over the Steelers on Sunday night.

Apparent to almost everyone but Flacco.

“I didn’t even know Torrey caught the pass,” Flacco said after the game. “I thought it was pass interference. Then when I found out he caught the pass, I almost lost it.”

Flacco was asked when it dawned on him that Smith had made the catch.

“Well, I started jogging down the field and I saw a couple of people celebrating, and I was just excited,” Flacco said. “‘OK, we’re going to get an opportunity to put the ball in here on the 1-yard line.’ And then I saw him come out of the back of the end zone with the ball in his hands, and I was like, ‘Wait a second, did he catch that?’ and I saw a couple of people going nuts and celebrating on the field, and I was like, ‘He must’ve caught the ball.’”